Sleeve structure for garments



.Juhe 24,1958 I H. 5. mass Y 2,839,756

SLEEVE STRUCTURE FOR GARMENTS Filed Sept. 27, 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 I INVE'NTOR w Harry S. Geiss v I A ORNEY June 24, 1958 Filed Sept. 27, 1956 FIG. 5

. H. S. GEISS SLEEVE STRUCTURE FOR GARMENTS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR HorryS. Geiss ATTORNEYS June24, 1958 H. s. GEISS 6 SLEEVE STRUCTURE FOR GARMENTS Filed Sept. 27, 1956 I 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR Harry S. Geiss ATTORNEYS or sleeve er the garment.

a 7 2,839,756 SLEEVE STRUCTURE FORLGARMENTS 'j ,;Harry s. Geiss, New York, N.

- Application September 27,1956, Serial N6. 612,550 a 1' Claim: 1011-125 My irivention rela'tes 'to improvements in sleeved. garments, and more particularly to 'a's'leeve construction combined with the body-structure of the garment in.

such'a. way as to permit substantially unrestricted relativeq'movement of the arms of the'body of the wearer without producing any appreci ble' pull oil either the body a The'epresent application isa 'continuation-impart of my pending'application Ser." No; 571,959, filed March 16, 195.6,.'for"Construction'for Sleeved Garment, and also includes 'an improved construction over that-disclosed in thepending application. Y 1

"My -invention is applicable to varioustypes of sleeved FatentedjJune '24, 1958 the outer edgeof the band and secured in thie underarm section ofthe sleeve of the garment as apart thereof.

The'band also advantageously includes an elongated section extending from the inner edge of the band and secured in the underarm section of the body of the garment as a part thereof. While, the garment preferably ,includes both of the projecting or extending sections on the band, it may 'include' either one. .In an advantageous construction the projections extend the full length of the sleeve andbody, respectively.

Furthermore, according to the present invention, the coupling band of stretchable material I is concealed under: 7 a shoulder'cover member preferably included as apart.

of the bodyof the garment and which extends over the band of stretchable material, at least theportions of the band of substantially uniform width along theifronhtop and back of the armhole or sleeve attachment section of the garment. The improved garment also preferably includes a sleeve structure or pattern of such a shape that the sleeve will hang straight without*folds'.. H A sleeved garment includingthe stretchable, coupling fabric, joining the sleeve'proper and the body of the-garment, permits unrestricted movement of the wearers arms in any direction without applying any stress whatever to the wearer or to the body or sleeve of the garment.-

. I The'couplingband ofstretchable fabric give's"f reedom garments,' for .either sport or regular wear including jackets, shirts, pajamas, blouses,'*dresses and other sleeved garments-1 The improved construction is-particiilarlyam' vantageous; for sport garments, .particularly'sp'ort jackets and sportshirtsij of various types;

Yaripusproposalshave been ma'deifor providing for free arm movement-; in garment structures, but for the most part, theseproposals relateto the provisio'ni of ani rt or-gusset directly at the armpit of the garment in-" tended @to giv r. increased freedom of movement over sleeved .garments of conventional .rtypc.

a While such. prior structuresflmay provide some arrn-' freedom,-:theyunintentionally create added strains along the joint or seam between the sleeve-proper and the body portionof the garment in which the'armhole is provided; This is particularly true with respect to the areas adjacent/the points where the sleeve iszattached' directly to the body of the garment at the edge or end of the underarm insert.

Having in mind the foregoing disadvantages, the priment construction in which there is full freedom of move ment for the body and arms of the wearer.

A further object-of my invention is to provide a sleeve or sleeve attachment structure for garments which is adapted to eliminate. all'stress between the sleeve and the body of the garment or stresses caused by sleeve attachme nt seams so that the wearer of the garment is unrestricted with respect'tohis arm movements.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved construction'for garments which accomplishes the foregoing objects and which at the same time includes'structural ele'ments'which enhance the fit and appearance'of the garment. 1

In'my pending application referred to, I have disclosed an improved garment construction in" which the sleeves and body of the garment are joined together by a coupling band of stretchable fabric, which-may include underarm enlargements extending intothe sleeve and into the body of-the garment. The improved construction of the present j invention includes a sleeve coupling band of stretchable fabric which'preferably has a substantially uniform width along the upper portion of the armhole 'o'r. sleeve attachment section of the garment, the band including an elongated, substantially large section projecting from without strain all around 'the shoulder of thawearer and-eliminates the effect of restricting seams.. -At the, top of the shoulder, for example, .there is no down pull' onthe yoke when the wearer reaches down as in deliver.-

ing a bdwling ball. Furthermore, the garment will notride up or pull out of or above skirts,'slai:ks or trousers.

' mary object of my invention is to provide a sleeved garwhen the arms of the wearer are raised; I

The improved sleeve structure. which hangs without folds combined with the coupling bandand projections of-stretchable material produces a construction which is.

substantially'ideal from the standpoint of appearance and yieldability. The flexible band member cooperates with a particularsleeve pattern to .give asleeve withjfreedom of movement, whereas this sleeve if used alone, whilejjit hangs straight Without folds, is folded'whenj'the arms'are raised. The combination gives a welhgroo'med appear ance with the arms lowered or raisedand at the same time provides freedom of movement.

1 The improved results obtalned by the'inverition, willbe readily. appreciated when-it is understood that the sleeve'pattern for ordinary shirts, for example, is cut so that the shirt will look perfectly smooth on a scarecrow.

In'othe'r words, when the sleeves are held out straight,

they give .a good appearance, but when they are hanging down as in ordinary use, they fold from the shoulder .to the underarm portion of the sleeve, the foldsjfollowing generally the outline of the seam by which thesleeve is attached to the body .of the garment. I

The improved garment of the presentinvention, be-

cause of the novel construction and because of the man ner in which the sleeve and body are linked together with arms. The manner of constructing the garment, particu larly where the projections from the band extend through the sleeves and body, results'in a considerable saving of fabric yardage. over'that used in accordance with the accepted practice of providing excess material in order to give freedom of movement for the wearer. more, the improved constructionof the present invention results in a garment which has a snug-fitting appear ance and not the baggy and balloony appearance'found in the usualgarments made with sufiicient material to give the wearer some freedom of action.

The improved garment construction of the present invention is "ideally suited for making sleeved garments Furtherwhich have a substantially skin-tight appearance but which will not give the wearer any resistance to arm movement, muscular expansion or chest expansion.

The improved sleeved garment construction of the present invention is described more in detail hereinafter in connection with the accompanying drawings illustrating some embodiments of the invention and forming a part of this application.

In the drawings: I

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of a jacket c'o'rl-f struction in accordance with the invention and provided with-a two-piece sleeve according to the invention, coupled to the body of the garment by a flexible fabric coupling ring normally covered with an overlying cover member;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to that of Fig.1 showing a modified jacket construction provided with a one-piece sleeve;

Fig. 3 is a'planview in pattern form of the one-piece sleeve used in Fig. 2 and of the front and back body sections associated therewith;

Fig: 4 is a pattern type view on a reduced scale of the flexible fabric coupling band shown in Fig. 2 and used in connection with the pattern shaped elements shown in Fig; 3;

Fig; 5 .is a view similar to that of Fig. 4 showing a modified form of pattern or cut-out of the fiexible fabric band;

Fig. 6 is a plan View in pattern form of the front and back sections of the jacket shown in Fig. l and of the pattern form for the pleat lining;

Fig. 7 is a plan view in pattern form of the two-piece sleeve shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 is aj broken view of a modified form of jacketconstruction, according to the invention, in which a pro-' jection on the flexible fabric band extends to the lower endof the jacket; and

Fig. 9 is a viewsimilar to that of Fig. 8 showing a modified construction in which the flexible fabric coupling ring includes. projections respectively extending through the full length of the sleeve and to the lower edge of the jacket.

Theimproved garmentconstruction of the present invention is illustrated by the embodiments of Figs. 1, 2, 8 and 9 in connection: with jackets, such as sports jackets made of suitable material and on a known type of jacket pattern, except for the particular sleeve patterns and modified body patterns showntin the drawings.

According to the. construction shown in Fig. 1,.the

jacket comprises front sections 16 attached respectively at opposite sides of the jacket to back sections 12 by underarm seams 14. The shoulder portions of the front and back portions are joined respectively to yokes 15 in the usual way. It is to be understood that the jacket may or may not be provided with pockets as illustrated and thatit may be provided with a different style collar than that shown, or include no collar. at all.

In addition to the foregoing, the jacket of Fig. 1 includes two piece sleeves 16, one of which is raised, while the other is shown hangingdown in normal position. The sleeves 16 comprise a and an undersleeve section 18 joined together by seams in the usual manner. The patterns for the top and undersleeve sections are shown in Fig. 7. Y t

The sleeves .16 or thc bsdy garment include'a coupling member 20 by which the sleeve and body of the garment are joined together, this member 20 comprising a stretchable fabric shown in Fig. l in substantially unstretched condition, except for the armpit section of the right sleeve which is raised to illustrate the freedom of movement provided by the stretchable fabric. The coupling member 20 is generally ring-shaped in the sense that it joins the sleeve'proper to the body of the jacket with a. stretchable material, and in any garment eliminates restricting attachment seams. The front, top

top sleeve section 17 1 andback portions of the member 20 are preferably of substantially uniform width, as for example, in the form of a band, and these portions are attached respectively to the sleeve 20 and the body of the jacket by seams 21 and 22. The seam 21 is at the attachment edge of the sleeve 16, while the seam 22 is located inwardly of the armhole edges of the body sections and 12 and yoke so as to leave a cover 23 which extends over and covers all or substantially all of the normally visible portions of the coupling member 20, as shown with respect to the left sleeve 16. With respect to the right sleeve, the cover 23 is shown folded back at the top merely for the purpose of showing the full extent of the band 20. When the arm or arms are raised as in the case of the right arm-,it is apparent that the cover 23 does not completely cover the coupling member at the underarm portion.

The cover 23 comprises an extension of the material of the body portion of the garment and is provided with a lining 24 of bias-cut fabric, one edge of which issecured in the seam 22, while the other edge is secured in a hem at the outer edge of the cover 23. The biascut fabric lining 24 is shown in pattern form in Fig. 6 in connection with the front and back body sections 10 and 12, also shown in pattern form. While the cover 23 is shown in Figs. 1 and 6 as comprising an integral part of the front and back body sections 10 and 12, it may be made separate from these sections.

. As indicated in Fig. 1, the undersleeve section 18 includes a cut-out extending substantially into the sleeve. This isthe indentation at 25 in the pattern of Fig. 7. The fabric coupling member 20 may have the form shown in Fig. '5 having band sections 26 merging into a lower pointed section 27 and an upper projection 28 whichv extends into the cut-out section 25 of the undersleeve section 18. The band sections 26 are joined togetherqby. a seam 29 in Fig. 1, while the pointed section 27 is secured at the lower part of the seam 22 inside the body portion of the garment at the inner part of the cover 23. The tip of the-projection 27 may be positioned at the intersection of the seams14'and 22. The, projections 27 and 2801f the member 20 may be some what U-shaped or V-shaped, and be of any desired length accordingto' the showings in Figs. 1, 2, 8 and 9.

The band member-20 may have the pattern shape shown in Fig. 4, and it is to be'understood that the member maybe ring-shaped or comprise a continuous band cut from tubular knitted fabric-material. However, the. band sections 26 advantageously have a length as required, so that they are sewn together at the top of the garment, as for example, by the seam 29 which is stretchable and normally covered by the cover member 23. Where the seam 29 is employed, the coupling mentbers 20 may be cut from fiat stretchable material on either of the patterns shown' in Figs. 4 and 5 with the ring portions 26 having the required length for the particular size of jacket. In constructions in which the ringshaped coupling member 20 is not provided with an extension 28 or 27, the member may have substantially the same width throughout, and the attachment seams, such as the seams 21 and 22, may be continuous arcuate seams.

In the modified construction shown in Fig. 2, the jacket has an appearance which is generally the same as that shown in Fig. I, but is provided with one-piece sleeves 30, coupled to the body of the jacket by a soft flexible elastic coupling band 31 cut, for example, substantially on the pattern shown in Fig. 4. The onepiece sleeve is shown in Fig. 3 in connection with the in Fig 4,. includes tapered band sections 34 and sub- In assembling.

stantially U-shaped projections 35 and36.

the .elemeritsf30,"3land the bodyfsections 10* and 12' to provide 'tli'e'cori'str'u'ctiofi "shown inFig. 2, the projection' or extension 36 is sewn into the armpit section of the sleeve 30 along the straight edges37 and 38, while the projection 35 is sewn into the, underarm portion of the garment along the straight edges 39 and 40 of the body sections .lzfian'd 10", respectively.

'The jacket shown '11 Fig. 2 is provided with an overlapping pleat 23' similar to the cover 23 of Fig. 1, except that it does not extend around the underarm portion of the garment. On the other hand, it is substantially suflicient to cover the band of stretchable material, as

shown in connection with the left sleeve in Fig. 2.

The sleeve patterns shown in Figs. 3 and 7 provide a sleeve which will hang without folds. This result is achieved in the two-piece sleeve by including in the top sleeve 17 an elongated roundedportion 41, the top of which is attached to the upper portion of the coupling member 20 or other form of stretchable coupling member as described herein. The top sleeve section 17, as shown in Fig. 7, has edges 42 and 43. The high point of the curve 41 extends substantially away from the upper ends of these edges, whereas in a normal sleeve the cut would extend almost straight across from the upper ends of these edges. The top sleeve section is attached to the undersleeve section 18, which includes the cutout portion 25 described above. This undersleeve section is provided with edges 44 and 45 which are respectively sewn to the edges 42 and 43 of the top sleeve section 17. The onepiece sleeve 30 shown in Fig. 3 includes an elongated rounded. end portion 46, which corresponds in general to the rounded portion 41 of the top sleeve section 17. The one-piece sleeve 30 will, therefore, hang in substantially'unwrinkled position, as shown by the left between the front bodysection and back body section 12". The elastic or stretchable material of the extension 47 is preferably integral with but may be sewn to the main band section of member 31'. It forms a side section of the body portion of the garment below the armhole which permits muscular and chest expansion without placing any noticeable strain on the garment or its wearer. Furthermore, the garment may be made to fit in an almost skin-tight'manner and still give the wearer unlimited freedom of movement and action. The extension 47 is shown tapered from the underarm portion of the garment to the bottom of the jacket, but this section may be of uniform width if desired and may terminate at the point of any elastic band or belt structure which might be provided at the waist of the garment.

The modified form of construction shown in Fig. 9

relates to a jacket generally similar to that of Fig. 8, except in this case that the coupling band of stretchable material 31" not only includes an extension or projection 47' as in Fig. 8, but also includes an extension or projection 48 extending the full length of the sleeve 30". The extension 48, which forms an undersleeve section,

1 is tapered from the underarm portion of the garment to the end of the sleeve, or as shown, to the elastic wrist band 49. Where such a band is not used, the stretchable material 48 will extend'tothe end of the sleeve. This construction provides a sleeve which fits snugly but which also permits muscular expansion, elbow and arm movement without restraint. The extension or projections 47 sleeves which willhave a pattern somewhat similar to that shown in Fig. 3. The sleeve 30' might be exactly the same, while the sleeve 30 would be somewhat narrower in pattern with the edges 37 and 38 substantially lengthened to include the edges 32. A two-piece sleeve, such as that shown in Fig. 7, can be used in the construction of Fig. 8. The coupling members 31, 31' and 31" may be made of material of the same type as described above in connection with the band 20 and may be a continuous band or sewn together at the top, as in Fig. 1. The long extensions are preferably integral but may be sewn to the band portion with stretchable seams. Where the readily stretchable material used for making the coupling bands or members is to be stretchable in all directions, it may be made with an elastic weave, such as the weave or fabric known as Helenca, or similar weaves or farbrics may be used which are suitable for the purpose as specified herein. Furthermore, the elastic flexible or stretchable coupling bands or members are preferably of the type which will recover their normal dimensions when no strain is being applied, and they may be the same color as the body of the garment or may comprise material of a contrasting or harmonizing color. In certain types of sports clothes the coupling member may be used to provide a decorative or distinguishing feature which is made visible in a subtle manner when exposed from the underlying cover.

Where the coupling members .of elastic or stretchable material are to be used as a decorative feature in garments, their edges may be out other. than straight, so long as a substantial width of elastic fabric, for example from to 1 /2 inches in width is provided to secure the sleeves and body of the garment together to give the desired freedom of movement to the wearer. The extensions 47, 47' and 48 are of sufficient width to provide for the desired freedom of movement. While the extremes of these elements are shown as being tapered to substantially a point, it is to be understood that the width of stretchable material at these points may have the dimensions given above.

What'I claim is:

A garment comprising a body portion, a sleeve having an attachment end and having in the armpit section upwardly diverging edges forming a V-shaped cut-out terminating at its attachment end, the body portion including a relatively non-stretchable material defining a shoulder and armhole structure, the front and back sections of the garment, being out along downwardly converging lines to form a V-shaped cut-out in the armhole structure at the armpit,.a coupling member stretchable in all directions in the form of a ring, said coupling member having integral oppositelyprojecting V-shaped projections of substantially the same shapeand size as the V-shaped cut-outs in the sleeve and body portion, respectively, the edges of said projections merging with the respective edges of the ring along smoothly converging lines, the opposite sides of the coupling member being secured, respectively, to the attachment edge of the sleeveand the armhole section of the body portion, the edges of the V-shaped sections being secured to the edges of the cut-out sections in the sleeve and body portion, respectively, portions of the ring and portions of the projections at the armpit section extending into the front and back sections of the garment, the coupling member permitting unrestricted movement between the sleeve and body of the garment and freedom of movement of the shoulders of the wearer, and a cover member extending from the armhole section of the body portion over the coupling member along at least the front, top and back of said portion of garment whereby the coupling member a snug-fitting garment resulting 17 is covered and substantially invisible when the arm 2,281,984 of the wearer is down. 2,401,591

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 5 355,023 1,102,299 Scriven July 7, 1914 855,532 1,973,419

Trageser Sept. 11,4934 1,064,240

-8 Martiny May 5, 1942 Trinkel June 4, 1946 Saccoc'cib Dec,'18, 1956 FOREIGN 'PATENTS 1.

Great Britain Aug. 20,1931 'Germany Nov. j13,'1952 7 France Dec. 23, 1953' 

